Article of limp sheet material



June 24, 1941. L. e. STANLEY 2,247,320

ARTICLE OF LIMP SHEET MATERIAL Filed Jam. 25, 1958 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 vIN VENTOR.

June 24, 19.41. STANLEY 2,247,320

m ICLE OF LIMP SHEET MATERIAL Filed Jan. 25, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR /d J/ w/ey.

mm 11% #Mm ATTORNEYS Patented June 24, 1941 iJNi'l'ED STATE-S PATENT@EMCE 2,247,320 ARTICLE oFLnvrP SHEET MATERIAL Leopold G. stanley,Maplewood, N. J. Application may 25, 1938, Serial No. 186,770

2 Claims.

This invention is a novel leather article or utility case or boxparticularly of the kind which is of relatively small size and adapted,for example, to be packed away with other goods inside of a suitcase orother luggage or container. In referring to leather it is understoodthat any limp sheet material of suitable strength is included, the casebeing therefore generally limp and soft and well adapted for packingaway as described. Specifically, the utility case hereof is of squattycharacter, by which is meant that it is relatively shallow in itsvertical as compared with its horizontal dimensions or area.

The general objects of the present invention include convenience ofhandling, ease of pack: ing, and adaptability to receiving and holdingodd or miscellaneous articles, to be'inserted and stowed away compactly,the case in this sense being distinguished from the so called fittedcases having attaching means for locating specific contents. A commonuse for such a utility case is to contain toilet articles, such as smallcontainers for soaps, creams and the like, razors and brushes. Othercontents may consist of small articles of clothing, handkerchiefsand thelike. It is usefully available for holding certaincommodities such astobacco. The, casehis adapted to be placed on sale containing gift goodssuch as golf balls.

Further objects of the invention are to afford certain advantages aswill be described, among which may be enumerated that the case as awhole is believed to constitute an attractive novelty. It is roomy incapacity, having an extended peripheral volume as. will be described. Itis adapted to be closed by a continuous or Zipper type fastening and ina protective sealing manner, and it securely accommodates the contentsboth in open and closed positions. When packed there is substantially nowaste in volume, the combined walls of the case, being generally. limp,constituting a mere skin or glove-fitting shell, enclosing securely theassemblage, and being readily compressible when not overpacked.

In the general aspect of an article of limp sheet material, the objectis the improvement of the continuous system of fastening between theedges of an aperture in the sheet material and the edges of a closingflap therefor, as will. be more particularly described. ,1

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an articleof manufacture, specifically a utility case of leather or similar limpmaterial constructed in accordance ,with the present invention, the.same being shown in open position and supplied with contents ofmiscellaneous articles.

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in a fore and aftdirection, of the article shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view with the case in closed position.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view on an enlarged scale to show inpart the disposition of the fastening means when the case is closed.

Fig. 5 shows a modified construction in top plan view, the fasteningbeing omitted and the lid or flap being shown closed.

1 Fig. 6 is a perspective view, generally similar to Fig. 1, butembodying the modification of Fig. 5, and with the lid or trapdoor covershown closed and fastened.

Figs. '7, 8 and 9 respectively are cross section views taken on thelines l-l, 8-8 and 9-43 of Fig. 6.

In all the figures the showing is somewhat diagrammatic in thatthicknesses and other proportions are not strictly adhered to on accountof the difiiculties in illustrating structures of this class.

The figures show an article of manufacture of which the top wall may beconsidered as a sheet of limp material in which the continuous fastenerimprovement is embodied; but first the aspect of a utility case or boxwill be described in detail.

The, illustrated utility case is shown as of squatty proportions, asalready stated, and as of generally limp and easily packable character.It has a fiat bottom wall 5 which is preferably relatively stilt, havinga reinforcing or cardboard layer which however is bendable. The casealso has a series of limp or pliable peripheral or upstanding walls,shown as including a front side wallB, a back side wall I and end walls8, all of which may consist of a single piece of leather orcquivalentmaterial bent or shaped around to the peripheral shape of thecase, which is illustratively shown as oblong, with rounded corners,carrying out the general plan. There is also a substantially flat topwall 9 of outline similar to the bottom. It is a characteristic that theperipheral walls are combined unitarily with both the bottom and topwalls, at all their meeting edges.

For access, the top wall is formed with a single large aperture Inhaving an outline substantially smaller than that of the top wallthereby leaving a peripheral ledge or overhang H of substantial widthstanding inward from the upper corner edges of the case and providingstorage room thereunder.

For a closure to the access aperture there is provided a trap door l2,of proper dimension to close the aperture, said door being in the natureof a flap, united along its substantially straight rear edge l3 with therear edge of the aperture, thereby permitting it to hinge upwardly anddownwardly for opening and closing, as iliustrated. The trap door I2 issometimes an integral part of the limp top wall, as shown, beingproduced by slitting the top wall to the outline of the aperture aroundthree sides but not at the rear or hinged edge thereof. The contours ofaperture and closing flap, other than at the hinge line, are generallysimilar, each having curved portions, but being free of angles, as isnecessary for this type of fastening.

For a fastening means the free edges of the trap door and thecorresponding edges of the overhanging ledge are provided with acontinuous or Zipper type fastening M, carried around the edges of thedoor except at the hinged edge, and adapted for quick fastening andunfastening. Thus the Zipper fastening M is shown as consisting of theupper fastening element or series IS on the trap door and thecorresponding lower series on the top wall ledge iii. For reasons thatwill be explained these Zipper fastenings are applied not directly onthe leather or wall parts but upon narrow flexible as cloth strips I!and i8, respectively, so that the Zipper fastening may adapt itself tothe different situations presented at the straight and at the curvedportions of the outline. The Zipper or sliding fastening means iscompleted by the usual runner or slider 59 having a handle by which therunner may be pulled around the outline to be fastened, thusinterlocking the hooks of the complementary members.

The trap door l2, constituting a portion of the top wall 9, ispreferably somewhat stiff, and may be partly fitted, with fiat fittingssuch as a pocket flap 29 and a strap 25, to hold certain fiat articles,for example as illustrated.

In Fig. 3 the preferred proportions of top wall and trapdoor or lid areshown, the ledge H being narrow and its edges free so that all contentsmay be in view when the door is opened.

The joints or seams between walls may be secured by stitches. Thus thevertical peripheral walls may be composed of a single limp stripattached to itself at the rear by a sewed seam. Similarly, this stripmay be connected by seams with the bottom and top walls. The ledge oroverhang 9 preferably extends completely around the case, providing anunderneath volume in which to stow away various articles. In practicaluse, the contained articles may first be positioned underneath theoverhang, and the centrally disposed articles set in place thereafter,and of course there may be more than one layer of articles inserted,until the case is reasonably full. When articles of wear, such as silkstockings are packed in the case, the limp walls may be composed of orcovered with a fabric of ornamental texture and dainty coloring.

In the use of the Zipper type fastener, as is preferred, there may be aspecial relation between the attaching parts, as shown. The accessaperture and the trap door are of a contour free of angles, havingrounded front corners. A conventional Zipper fastening is not adapted tobe carried around a substantial curve in its own plane, and thereforethe fastening must stand upright at the front curves referred to, asFig. 4 shows. On the other hand, the fastening may lie flatwise wherethe connected edges are straight. The slit or gap between the end ledgesand the ends of the trap door is therefore made wide along its straightlength, the two edges being spaced somewhat apart, and the Zipperfastening being disposed horizontally in this space. At the front and atthe bends however the slit is narrow, and the Zipper disposes itselfvertically, as shown, being allowed to take this position by reason ofthe flexible strips I1 and 8. The Zipper is well able to take thenecessary twist between its horizontal straight portion and its verticalcurved portion.

In the preferred embodiment of Figs. 5 to 9, a different relationbetween the top wall 9 and trapdoor cover lZ is shown. The trapdoor isshown as composed of a separate piece of leather, extended under andattached by its extension 12 to the rear overhanging ledge H its mainportion substantially closing the access aperture [0 Another differenceis that the trapdoor cover is extended forwardly further than in Fig. 3,so, as to overlap the front ledge, thereby tending to prevent thetrapdoor slipping down through into the interior of the case.

At the ends the trapdoor in Figs. 5 and 6 is shown as spaced away fromthe end ledges of the top wall, similarly to Fig. 3, and attachingstrips and Zipper type fastener elements are shown, corresponding withthose shown in the previous figures. However, to facilitate the hingingaction of the trapdoor, the gap between the door and the right handledge is shown as extended rearwardly beyond the hinge line I3 therebyto accommodate the Zipper runner.

It is characteristic of all the disclosed embodiments, in a specificaspect, that the apertured top wall or ledge to which the trapdoor orlid is hinged and the trapdoor itself closing such aperture are both ofthem flat and level. And they all show the advantageous Zipper type offastening, which can readily bend out of its own plane, and can twist,but does not readily bend in its own plane to an appreciable extent. Thecomplementary Zipper parts should have identical lengths, and this isallowed for in the form of Figs. 1 to 4 by the fabric strips H and I8,which usually come with the Zipper and which dispose themselves toaccommodate the mode in which the Zipper metal parts must be disposedwhen closed. The lengths of the contours of the trapdoor and theaperture are different in this form and so require an unnatural lay ofthe closed Zipper, which the cloth strips take care of. In Figs. 5 to 9,however, the door, being shorter than the aperture, is also made wider,thus equalizing these two con-tours or peripheries and allowing a morenatural and easy lay of the Zipper fastening when the case is closed.The trapdoor or the top wall or the vertical side and end walls may bemade of tough pliable transparent sheet materials, of which several areknown, thus giving a View of contents which maybe desirable to be seenwhen the case is closed.

The embodiment of Figs. 5 to 9 is characterize in that the flap contourfalls partly inside the aperture. edge, as at the ends, leaving gaps,but partly outside thereof, as at the front, producing an overlap. Byreason of the extents to which this is done the two complete contoursare rendered substantially equal. Thus the two contours depart fromexact conformity and give a spacing which is that which the Zippermembers need for their accommodation. All difficulty in applying thefastening to such kind of use is thus obviated. As shown in Fig. 6, thecombined fastening elements, when closed, dispose themselves flatwise inthe gap portions, as further shown in Fig. 7, but twist at the curves,as Fig. 8 shows, and take an inverted position, as at the front, wherethe widened flap overlaps the edge of the aperture or instanding ledge,as Fig. 9 shows.

There has thus been described a limp sheet material article or utilitycase embodying the principles and attaining the advantages of thepresent invention; and since various matters of arrangement, combinationand construction may be modified without departing from the principles,it is not intended to limit the invention to such matters except to theextent set forth in the appended claims.

Iclaim:

1. An article of limp sheet material comprising a limp wall formed withan aperture of substantial area, and a closing flap member flexiblyjoined to the wall along a straight hinge line, and a continuous orslider type fastening means having its complementary members disposedaround the edges of the respective contours of aperture and flap otherthan at such hinge line and with a slider member movable around thecontour of the fastening means for fastening and unfastening the same;said article characterized in that the contours of the aperture and flapcomprise curves but are free of angles around their corresponding edgesother than at such hinge line, and that the aperture and flap havegeneral similarity of contour but are slightly out of conformity,namely, by reason of the flap con tour falling partly inside that of theaperture, leaving a gap, and partly outside thereof, producing anoverlap, to such extents that the total contours of the aperture and-flap respectively are closely equal in length; whereby the fasteningwhen fastened disposes itself in relatively inverted positions at therespective parts whereat the flap edge falls inside and outside of theaperture edge.

2. An article of limp sheet material, comprising a limp wall formed withan aperture of substantial area, and a closing flap member flexiblyjoined to the wall along a straight hinge line, and a continuous orslider type fastening means having its complementary members disposedaround the edges of the respective contours of aperture and flap otherthan at such hinge line and with a slider member movable around thecontour of the fastening means .for fastening and unfastening the same;said article characterized in that the contours of the aperture and flapcomprise portions which are free of angles around their correspondingedges other than at such hinge line, namely, a front portion opposite tothe hinge line and end portions between the hinge line and frontportion, and that the aperture and flap have a general similarity ofcontour but are out of conformity to the extent that the flap contour atboth ends falls inside that of the aperture, leaving a gap at each end,but at the front falls outside thereof, producing a front overlap,whereby the total contours of the aperture and flap respectively aresubstantially equal in length, and the fastening when fastened disposesitself in relatively inverted positions at the front portion and the twoends respectively.

LEOPOLD G. STANLEY.

